China trade

The New York Times details the US blacklisting of Chinese genomics firm BGI over alleged Xinjiang abuses and national security concerns. Global Trade Alert traces China’s expanding export controls across sectors and countries despite suspending its 2025 rare earth measures. Bloomberg outlines plans by the European Union (EU) to restrict more Chinese imports as its trade deficit nears record levels. Foreign Affairs features an exchange between Nicholas Lardy and Michael Froman on China’s trade surplus: Lardy attributes its growth to high savings and slowing investment, while Froman warns that the surplus’s scale and China’s implicit subsidies threaten foreign manufacturers. Bloomberg highlights projections that China could lead eight of 17 strategic industries by 2030, despite persistent economic challenges and trade restrictions. The Associated Press highlights how strong exports helped China’s economy grow 4.5% in the third quarter despite sluggish domestic demand.

Mentioned publications

US restricts trade with Chinese genomics company – Rebecca Robbins and Ana Swanson, The New York Times, October 28, 2026
The Trump administration added Chinese genomics firm BGI and its affiliated companies to a forced-labor import blacklist, restricting their ability to ship products to the United States. The move follows years of US scrutiny over BGI’s alleged links to abuses in Xinjiang and national security concerns surrounding genetic data and comes amid proposed tighter restrictions on US investment in Chinese biotechnology.
A year on, China’s export control net keeps widening while part of it is paused – Marius Risse, Global Trade Alert, October 23, 2026
Although China temporarily suspended its October 2025 rare earth export controls, Beijing has since expanded restrictions across more sectors and countries, including renewed controls on technology transfers and re-exports by foreign firms. These new measures are narrower than the suspended rare earth controls and allow selective easing, but reinforce China’s flexible use of export controls, with licensing increasingly dependent on the buyer, destination, and exporter.
EU working on more China curbs as trade deficit heads for record – Jorge Valero and Olivia Fletcher, Bloomberg, October 23, 2026
The EU is advancing plans to protect more sectors from surging Chinese imports as its trade deficit with China threatens to reach a record high this year. Building on an agreement with Beijing to cap Chinese hybrid-vehicle exports to Europe, the bloc is considering similar restrictions on other industries through negotiations or unilateral measures, while developing new trade powers that could restrict foreign access to its market.
Who killed the global economy? – Nicholas R. Lardy and Michael B. G. Froman, Foreign Affairs, October 20, 2026
Nicholas Lardy questions Michael Froman’s warnings about the immediate risks from China’s trade surplus, attributing its recent rise more to high savings and slowing investment than industrial subsidies, and calling for cooperation between surplus and deficit countries to reduce global imbalances. Froman counters that the scale of China’s surplus and implicit subsidies threaten other countries’ manufacturing bases and fuel protectionism, underscoring the need for coordinated efforts to rebalance China’s economy.
China set to lead in AI models, other key areas by 2030, BI says – Ben Holland, Bloomberg, October 28, 2026
A new Bloomberg Intelligence report projects that China will lead in eight of 17 strategically important industries by 2030, including large language models, while the US and China move toward joint AI leadership, with neither achieving overall supremacy. Despite these advances, AI and automation are unlikely to reverse China’s economic slowdown, while trade restrictions may fragment rather than halt its industrial expansion.
China’s economy accelerated in the July-September quarter on robust exports – Chan Ho-Him, Associated Press, October 19, 2026
China’s economy grew 4.5% year-on-year in the third quarter of 2026, fueled by robust exports, including high-tech products, despite weak domestic demand and a prolonged property downturn, bringing it closer to meeting its annual growth target. However, its reliance on export-led growth and growing trade surplus are heightening concerns among trading partners, particularly the EU, over the impact of low-cost Chinese imports on domestic industries.